Sunday, April 03, 2005

... And Boy Are My Arms Tired!

I found out this past Friday that I was accepted (with partial scholarship) to a summer program in Avignon, in the south of France. I’ll be going there for six weeks, taking classes, watching plays, and eating real cheese for the first time since I left Paris four and a half years ago. (Well, with one notable exception: the homemade blue cheese Baker got as a present from a Berkshire parent this past Christmas.)

So this is fabulous news, right? The problem is money. (I mean, when is money not the problem?) Fortunately, I have loving family members who are willing to give gifts and to make interest-free loans so that I will be able to participate in this program. But that’s not really the point. The point is that I’m an adult and I want to be responsible for myself.

But how does a responsible adult in graduate school actually afford such an extravagance as is a luxurious academic program in the south of France? I don’t know. The airfare alone nearly caused me to choke on my cereal. Anyone want to tell me why it has to cost over $1000 to fly to Paris in June when it costs half that much to fly there now? I mean, I get the whole economics of it, the supply-and-demand aspect, but give me a frickin’ break!

Any suggestions as to where I might find a cheaper student fare are more than welcome. In fact, I’m begging you. I refuse to pay over a grand to get across the Atlantic. I will strap a pair of flattened cardboard boxes to my arms and flap myself on over there if it comes to it. I have my dignity to protect, not to mention my bank account.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home